


Shield Me

by Goodnightwife



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Car Accidents, F/M, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Light Smut, Threats of Rape/Non-Con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-29
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-07-04 07:27:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15836574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Goodnightwife/pseuds/Goodnightwife
Summary: Reader has a shielding power that’s relatively new. The team teaches her to develop her powers, fluffiness ensues with Bucky!





	Shield Me

The Avengers sat around the conference table, all eyes trained on the screen ahead of them, watching one of the strangest sights they had ever seen. A large man was inside what appeared to be an even larger bubble. He hit the sides, kicked at them with all his strength, and even shot at the sides, but the bubble refused to pop. To the left of the strange bubble stood a young woman. Nothing strange about her, in fact, she was the most normal looking person they had ever seen. She blended so well into the background, that unless they were looking for her, they might not have noticed her at all. She was watching the large man struggle to get out of the bubble. Her right hand was raised at waist level, palm facing the bubble-encased man. The man stopped struggling and nodded to her. She closed her hand, lowered her arm back to her side and the bubble disappeared and the man walked free.  
  
Tony pressed a button on the remote and paused the video, “Fury sent this to me this morning, asking that we all take a look and see if we are interested.”  
  
“Interested in what?” Steve asked.  
  
“Interested in her joining the Avengers.” Tony replied.  
  
“How old is she?” Clint asked.  
  
“Her file says that she’s 25.” Tony answered, flipping through the pages.  
  
“May I see that?” Bruce reached a hand to the file. Tony handed it over.  
  
The video, still paused, showed the woman raising a hand to her face. Nat squinted at it and asked, “What is she doing there? It looks like she’s crying.”  
  
Everyone’s attention was immediately back on the screen.  
  
“Her file says that holding the ‘shield’ up for a sustained period causes an emotional reaction when she lets it down, typically in the form of crying or laughing.” Bruce supplied.  
  
“Well I like her!” Tony said enthusiastically. “We should have her in for an interview.”  
  
“Interview?” Steve said, one eyebrow raised. “Do we interview people now?”  
  
“Well we have to meet her. Look what she can do! That man shot his pistol and couldn’t break her shield. Remember that this girl is relatively untrained. We can train her, teach her how to develop her power.” Tony walked towards the screen and turned it off. “I think it’s worth a look-see.”  
  
Steve looked around the table at everyone else. “What does everyone think?”  
  
Bruce shrugged. Nat and Clint looked at each and then nodded once to Steve. Vision nodded his consent.  
  
Bucky simply sighed, “If she wants to be here at all, we should at least talk to her I guess.”  
  
“But she has to want to be here, and she has to have a good reason for wanting this life” Wanda added.  
  
Steve looked at Tony, “Alright then, let’s meet her.”  
  
“Good because she’s right outside,” Tony said. “FRIDAY, please show the young lady in.”  
  
“Of course, Mr. Stark” FRIDAY replied.  
  
The door to the conference room opened and a very nervous looking girl slowly walked in and stood next to Tony at the head of the table. Her hands clasped in front of her, wringing themselves. She looked a little lost and a lot scared. Her pinstriped pencil skirt and jacket made her look a little like a librarian.  
  
“Hello, what’s your name?” Steve asked.  
  
“I’m Y/N. Y/N Y/L/N.” she replied  
  
“It’s nice to meet you, Y/N. Can you tell us why you are here and why you want to be an Avenger?”  
  
Y/N looked down at her toes before answering. “I-i-in all honesty, I’m not really sure I do want to be an Avenger. D-director Fury found me and brought me to SHIELD for some testing and he mentioned this to me. I told him I would be willing to talk about it but not make any promises until I had time to think it over.”  
  
“That was very wise,” Bruce said. “Tell us how you got your power.”  
  
“It started when I was young, maybe 5 years old. If I didn’t want something or someone near me, they just wouldn’t be. Thinking back on it now, I think it was more the power of suggestion rather than the ‘shield’, as Fury put it. W-when I was 18, I was in a car accident. A tanker slid into my car door. I-I-I saw it coming for me and knew I could never move in time or get out of the car quick enough. I closed my eyes and waited. The crash came but I only heard it, I never felt it. I opened my eyes and I was in a bubble in the middle of the wreckage. U-untouched.”  
  
“So you protected yourself,” Clint said.  
  
Y/N nodded, “Yes, without even trying. F-for the next few years, nothing happened and I thought I had dreamed it or it was some kind of fluke. But when I was 21, my sister took me to a bar for my birthday and on our way back to our hotel, a g-g-gang came out of an ally and…. W-w-well… they said they were going to r-r-rape us and kill us. I was hiding behind my sister as one of them came forward. I-I was fully panicking and my shield came up and s-sliced him.”  
  
“It actually cut him? Broke his skin?” Steve asked.  
  
“N-no, i-i-it cut him… in h-half.” Y/N looked back down at her toes, hardly able to look into anyone’s face.  
  
“Whoa.” Nat said, “That would have come in handy last week.”  
  
Y/N’s head jerked up and stared at Nat. “’Handy’ isn’t the word I would use for it. I literally sliced a man in half. I ended his life for no reason.”  
  
Tony cleared his throat from the back of the room where he had wondered while Y/N was talking, “I read that police report. That man that you ‘killed for no reason’ was a known drug dealer with links to the Cartel. You had plenty of reason.”  
  
Y/N nodded, “Perhaps, that’s true, Mr. Stark, but it wasn’t my choice. I couldn’t control it. Since then I have learned to control my power and use it to help, not … slice.”  
  
Bruce, still reading through Y/N’s file, looked up and asked, “This says that your heart rate needs to be elevated, do you find that difficult to maintain?”  
  
“Sometimes, but whenever I have used my power, I’ve always been scared or nervous, so it’s kinda natural. I’ve been teaching myself to try and control my heart rate but I’m not very good at it yet. I kind rely on my nerves.”  
  
“Are you nervous now?”  
  
“I’m standing in a room being interviewed by the Avengers, yes, I’m nervous,” Y/N replied with slight fidget of her hands, still wringing themselves.  
  
“May we see a demonstration?” Vision finally spoke up.  
  
Y/N nodded, “I guess that’s the best way to see what I can do… okay… um… someone throw something at me.”  
  
Clint picked up an empty ashtray in front of him and immediately flung it directly at Y/N. It flew with Clint’s normal accuracy but when it got to Y/N, it simply stopped, hovered for a second, and then dropped to the floor.  
  
“You didn’t raise your hand,” Steve said.  
  
“No, that was easy, I didn’t need to. Typically I only need to actually move if I want to project the shield elsewhere. Mr. Stark, please step forward.”  
  
As Tony took a step, Y/N hand raised to waist level, her palm facing Tony. Tony stepped down and took another step and bumped into an invisible wall, which glowed slightly blue when he touched it. He raised his hand and felt the shield wall, staring at the light blue color it glowed around his hand.  
  
“It’s cold.” He said, his voice slightly muffled, “Can you heat it up?”  
  
“I think so” Y/N replied. She tilted her head to the right and looked at Tony as if he was suddenly an incredibly curious sight.  
  
Tony’s hand began to heat up and quickly got so hot that he jerked his hand back from wall. “That’s hot!”  
  
Y/N closed her hand and lowered her arm. “I’m sorry, did I burn you?”  
  
“No, I’m fine. That’s cool!” Tony grinned.  
  
“I would like to see more, something bigger,” Bucky spoke for the first time.  
  
Y/N e/c eyes met his bright blue ones, “What did you have in mind?”  
  
“Can you lift someone in the bubble of the shield?”  
  
“I haven’t tried that before” Y/N said nervously, “I don’t see any reason why I couldn’t lift it. If I can create it and manipulate it around something, I should be able to move it around once created…. Ummm… let me try something small.”  
  
Y/N looked down a the ashtray still laying on the floor. She focus on it, concentration showing on her face. Her right hand lifted, palm open toward the object. It slowly began to rise to the level of the table, move along the table and rest back in front of Clint.  
  
“I did that alright. Let me try something bigger.” Y/N said was a small smile.  
  
“Hold on,” Bucky said. “Let’s take this to the hanger so we don’t break something important.”  
  
Y/N lifted her chin, ready for a challenge. “Alright, let’s go.”  
  
The hanger lights came on one by one as Y/N and the team walked in. Tony, in the lead, pointed to Steve’s motorcycle and said, “Can you lift that?”  
  
“I thought we were coming here to NOT damage important things?” Steve mumbled.  
  
“Sacrifice for the team, Cap.”  
  
Y/N paused, “Even I know not to mess with Captain America’s bike. How about one of the others?”  
  
Tony shrugged, “If you insist.”  
  
Y/N focused on a bike a few slots down from Steve’s, her hand raised, palm facing the bike. It slowly began to lift, only slightly wobbling.  
  
Suddenly, the hanger door burst open. “I’m coming in hot!” came Sam’s voice over the loud intercoms in the building. “One of my wings got shot and I’m pretty sure I’m falling out of the sky.”  
  
Sam came into view quickly as he flew into the hanger, one wing smoking and a few flames came out. It was immediately evident that he couldn’t slow down. Before anyone could react, Y/N’s other hand flew up and instantly a shield appeared around him, slowing him down.  
  
“Whoa! What?!” Sam yelled as he was slowly lowered to the hanger floor. The smoke from his wing became trapped in the shield and the flames died down. Once he was on the floor, Y/N closed her hand and released the shield around him. The smoke blew away and the mechanic standing by with a fire extinguisher declared the fire had gone out.  
  
Bucky tapped on the shoulder. “You can put my bike down now, Y/N.”  
  
“Oh! Sorry.” Y/N slowly lowered the bike. “I didn’t realize I still had it.”  
  
Sam stood up, slid out of his wings, and walked over to the team. “What just happened? Who stopped me?”  
  
Steve pointed at Y/N, who was wiping away a tear that had made a track down her cheek. _Damn emotional responses._ Sam immediately wrapped Y/N in a bear hug and lifted her off her feet for an instant. “You saved my life!” He said dramatically. Tony rolled his eyes. Bucky frowned.  
  
“What’s your name?” Sam asked when he set her down again.  
  
“Y/N” she answered, “Nice to meet you.”  
  
“Are you joining us here?”  
  
“Not sure yet.” Y/N replied. “I think they have to vote on me or something.”  
  
“I’m convinced!” Sam declared. “You have my vote!”  
  
Bruce stepped forward, “I’m impressed, Y/N, but I think while we think things over, you need to do the same. This goes both ways. I would never be happy thinking someone was here against their will or didn’t make as informed decision as possible. We might consider a few months of trial time before any decision is made, on all our parts.”  
  
“I agree, Dr. Banner,” Steve said. “What does everyone think? Is six months trial time good for everyone? We may not need that much time, but it’s a starting place.”  
  
Everyone voiced their agreement, Y/N nodded with a small smile.  
  
“Alright then, tomorrow we start training, I’ll work out a schedule to get you training time with everyone on the team. In the meantime, go ahead and get moved in and comfortable. Nat can show you around the tower and get you acquainted with the ‘house rules’.”  
  
“We never used to have ‘house rules’ until Sam moved in.” Clint grumbled.  
  
“Hey, I resent that.” Sam retorted. “I made this place a higher level of awesome. And you stopped eating my blueberries.”  
  
Bucky snorted and went to tinker with his bike. Nat linked her arm with Y/N and began to steer her away from the men. “Let’s get outa here. I’ll show you the joys of living with these fellas and tell you all their secrets.”  
  
“I don’t have secrets!” Tony called after them. “I tell all so no one can hold anything over my head.”  
  
“Uh-huh, yeah sure.” Nat replied and as she waved at them and walked away with Y/N in tow.  
  
  
Nat showed her around the tower, Fury sent over her things from SHIELD, and Y/N just barely had time to unpack before FRIDAY was alerting her that dinner was ready and directed her to the kitchen. Everyone sat around the table comfortably; Nat put Y/N next to Bucky with a sly grin. The team spent the evening sharing stories and laughing at each other’s antics. It was like a family, something Y/N hadn’t really experienced in her life with the one exception of her sister.  
  
The next morning, she found the training room easily, only to be redirected to Bruce in the lab. He talked her through some of the tests he wanted to run while she was training and gave her a wrist monitor that would send her vitals back to him so he could monitor her heart rate and how her body reacts to using her powers in training.  
  
Once Y/N came back into the training room, Steve led her to Clint and Natasha, who walked her through a myriad of different weapons to try and find what she was most comfortable with.  
  
“Why do I need a weapon?” Y/N asked. “I have my powers, what else do I need?”  
  
“Steve wants to be ready for anything that might come. There may be a time when your shield isn’t the best weapon available.” Clint explained.  
  
“Well, okay.” Y/N lifted a small danger, raised her eyebrows at Nat, who nodded. Y/N flipped the knife in her hand so that she was grabbing the dull side of the blade and threw it at the target. It hit dead center. “Good enough?”  
  
Nat smirked, “For now.”  
  
Clint made Y/N shoot with his bow, which she could barely pull back far enough for the arrow to go anywhere near the target. Nat began teaching her hand-to-hand combat but Steve quickly took over when Bruce needed Nat’s help in the lab.  
  
“Okay, Y/N, show me what you’ve got.” Steve said, in his ready stance.  
  
“Oh, I don’t have much really.” Y/N said as she swiftly began throwing well timed punched and precisely aimed kicks. Steve kept up easily but was impressed with her abilities.  
  
After 5 straight minutes, a crowd began forming. Sam and Clint began betting on the fighters and Bucky watched with a smirk, arms folded over his chest. Nat and Bruce walked in and joined the crowd. Bruce had his tablet and kept tapping away and watching Y/N’s vital stats fly across the screen. Her heart rate was elevated into the cardio zone and headed into the peak zone. Her wrist monitor began to beep a warning but the two fighters didn’t stop. The beeping became more insistent and Y/N slowed her punches, holding up a hand to halt Steve, her other hand on her heart. She breathed deeply, trying to slow her heart rate, but it was too late.  
  
“Back away!” Y/N yelled and her shield came out in a shimmering blue glow and expanded around her ten feet and then immediately slammed back into her, knocking her to the ground, unconscious.  
  
Y/N eyes began to open as she felt herself floating… no, being carried. Lights passed overhead quickly. She groaned and closed her eyes against the glare.  
  
“Almost there.” Came a gruff voice from above. Bucky.  
  
“Almost where?” Y/N whispered, laying a hand over her face, mostly to hide her embarrassment.  
  
“The lab. Bruce is going to check you out.”  
  
“I’m okay. This isn’t the first time.” Y/N groaned again.  
  
“Yeah well, we need to be sure you’re okay. Bruce will check you out.”  
  
“Ugh, okay but I can walk.”  
  
“Too late, we’re already there.” Bucky laid Y/N on the bed in the lab with surprising gentleness.   
  
Bruce came up and began attaching electrodes and sticky pads to Y/N’s head, arms, and even a couple on her feet.  
  
“Okay, Y/N, I was monitoring your heart rate when you exploded and the only other person I’ve seen with a higher rate is, well, me. I know why my heart rate does that, but we need to know why yours does it. I’m going to start with a full body scan and then run a few more pointed tests on your heart, lungs, and brain.”  
  
“Oh boy, brain tests.” Y/N replied good-naturedly. “Alright Doc, go ahead.”  
  
Bucky stepped back and folded his arms over his chest. “Mind if I watch?”  
  
“Sure if you want” Bruce replied, “Just sit over there out of my way.” He pointed at a desk chair on the other side of the room. Bucky moved over and sat in the small chair, looking more like he overwhelmed it more than simply sat in it.  
  
“You don’t have to stay, Bucky.” Y/N said, “I’m really okay.”  
  
“I know, I just don’t have anything else to do right now.”  
  
The lab door swung open and Steve walked in. “You ok, Y/N? You have enough wires attached to you.”  
  
“I’m alright. Dr. Banner is just running some tests. Might be nice to know why I am the way I am.”  
  
Steve nodded and turned to Bucky, “Something’s come up and we need to head out for a couple days.”  
  
Bucky nodded and relieved the chair of its hefty burden. Steve turned back to Bruce, “We should be back in two days, I’ll check in as I can.”  
  
Bruce nodded, “No problem, Steve. You taking everyone?”  
  
“No, I’m leaving Sam, he’s still working on his wings. He’s pissed but he’s staying.”  
  
“Okay. Be safe and keep us in the loop.”  
  
Steve nodded to Bruce and Y/N and headed out of the lab. Bucky looked down at Y/N on the bed, gave her a small smile, and followed Steve out the door.  
  
“Alright, Y/N, I’m going to start with a full body scan, stay as still as you can.”  
  
As the scan began, Y/N let her mind wonder as to what Bucky’s smile meant and couldn’t come up with much, but she knew that she like it.   
  
A couple of days turned into four days. But that was all right with Y/N. She needed the time to adjust to her new environment and Sam was the perfect one to help her. Bruce took the opportunity to run test after test. Physically and mentally, Y/N felt like she had been poked and prodded enough to be a pincushion. He monitored her through different levels of using her shield. He also taught her some tricks on regulating her heart rate and how much effort it took to bring out her shield. Easy things, like protecting herself and moving small objects now took no motion from her at all. Bigger things, like lifting a motorcycle or Sam, took a little more effort, but Y/N was surprised at how easy even those things became in such a short time.  
  
When the team finally returned, Sam and Y/N were in the kitchen, making dinner for everyone. Tony had radioed in saying that they were two hours out and starving. Everyone promised to clean up in the tiny Quinjet bathroom if dinner was on the table when they landed. Y/N and Sam leapt into action. Y/N’s specialty was a hearty chicken and kale casserole, while Sam focused on sides just in case no one liked “that kale stuff”. Y/N laughed and rolled her eyes, knowing it would be a hit, it always was.  
  
The easy friendship that had developed between them over the past few days was invaluable to Y/N. Being the new kid on the block, she wasn’t sure how things would go. Making new friends had never been easy. She didn’t even meet her own sister until she was 15. Growing up in foster homes can really do a number on a kid’s self-esteem. Sam’s instant acceptance and friendship was one of the most valuable things in Y/N’s life right now.  
  
As the team neared the kitchen, Frank Sinatra blasted through the Bose speakers and some other noise that the team could only describe as “warbling”.  
  
_Fly me to the moon,_  
 _Let me play among the stars._  
 _Let me see what spring is like on_  
 _A-Jupiter and Mars._  
 _In other words, hold me hand._  
 _In other words, baby, kiss me._  
  
The team walked into the spacious, stainless steal industrial kitchen (because Tony would have no less) to see Sam and Y/N doing a very bad dance around the island, laughing and trying to sing along. Seeing the team, Y/N blushed and returned to stirring something on the stove.  
  
“Hey guys!” Sam said. “How’d it go?”  
  
“It went fine.” Steve raised an eyebrow at his friend. “How’s everything here?”  
  
“All good here, Cap! Dinner should be ready in 10 minutes. Everybody get a drink and grab a chair.”  
  
The team sprung into action, Nat mixing drinks to order, the guys shoved enough chairs up to the table, Sam pulled down plates and silverware for everyone, and Y/N pulled four 9x13 pans out of the huge ovens and made her way to the table.  
  
The appropriate amount of Ooooh’s and Aaaah’s followed as the team dug into the steaming casseroles as if they hadn’t eaten in weeks.  
  
“This is amazing!” Clint said around mouthfuls of food. “What is it?”  
  
“Oh, just a recipe I picked up, Chicken and Kale casserole with potatoes. It’s easy and always hits the spot when you’re really hungry.”  
  
“Can we have this every night?” Sam asked.  
  
“What about that ‘kale stuff’ in there, buster? You actually like it now?” Y/N teased easily.  
  
“Well, I mean, it’s not bad per se. It’s alright. I mean, I’ll allow it.” Sam stumbled over his words for a minute until he finally sighed, “Ok, yeah I like it a lot. Happy, lil bit?”  
  
“Yes,” Y/N replied smugly. “Yes I am happy.”  
  
The team raised collective eyebrows at this little exchange, small smiles appearing on a few faces. Bucky frowned a little behind his glass of tea.  
  
Once everyone had eaten their fill (which meant all the food was gone and Clint had licked one of the 9x13 pans clean), dishes were gathered and put in the sink. Y/N began filling the dish washer as the exhausted team filed out, heading to their rooms for much deserved rest.  
  
“That’s not how those go in there.” Bucky said, leaning on the island counter behind Y/N.  
  
“Excuse me?”  
  
“You have to put the plates in there so that they don’t bump against each other during the wash.”  
  
“Oh.” Y/N blushed and moved the plates around so they were further apart.  
  
“Not like that, here let me help.” Bucky stepped forward and took the dirty plate out of your soapy hand and placed it just so in the washer, placing the rest in the same direction. “You have to make them hug each other. Like they’re spooning or something.” He explained with a slight reddening of his own cheeks.  
  
“Oh I see.” Y/N took over filling the dish washer again. “Thanks.”  
  
“Sure. Goodnight, Y/N.”  
  
“’Night. Rest well.”  
  
  
The next morning was filled with debriefing for most of the team, so they were up early and in the conference room before Y/N made it to the kitchen for coffee. Poking around the cabinets, she couldn’t find the mug that had become her favorite over the past week. She looked everywhere, it was just gone. Oh well, she began looking for a new favorite and had spotted one that might suffice but it was on the top shelf in the mug cabinet. Sometimes being the ‘average height’ of 5’4” had disadvantages. With no stool to be found, Y/N concentrated just beneath her feet and created a small disc of shield and commanded it to lift her high enough to reach the cup.  
  
“So you can fly now?” Bucky startled her from the doorway the instant her feet touched the floor.  
  
“No. Well, kinda. I just make a shield under me and just lift myself. Nothing so fancy as flying really. Kinda like Magneto walks on metal plates sometimes.” Y/N turned bright red and turned to the coffee pot.  
  
“What’s a Magneto? Pour me some of that please.” Bucky stepped forward and held out his mug. Y/N instantly recognized it as her favorite.  
  
“Magneto is uh… well… he can control metal.”  
  
“Huh, doesn’t sound like we would get along well.” Bucky deadpanned, raising his metal arm.  
  
Y/N stared at him. “Did you just make a joke?”  
  
“Apparently not.” Bucky said with a long-suffering sigh as he turned to walk back out of the kitchen towards the conference room.  
  
“Genius, Y/N. Best comeback ever.” Y/N chided herself as she grabbed some cereal and went to get ready to meet Sam in the hanger.  
  
  
When Bucky entered the hanger after sulking in the conference room for about an hour, he had to stop and take in the sight in front of him. On the left, he saw a motorcycle (thankfully not his this time) floating about 20 feet in the air. On the right, Sam was floating even higher. In between them, Y/N had both arms fully extended, her back to Bucky.

“You okay up there Sam?” she called out, looking up.  
  
“Yeah, I’m good. It’s a little cold in here though, can you warm it up just a touch?”  
  
“How’s that?”  
  
“Better. Thanks! You okay, feeling any strain?”  
  
“Not really. Maybe I should try lifting one more thing.”  
  
“I volunteer.” Bucky said from behind her.  
  
Y/N twisted her head around to see who had spoken. Seeing Bucky, the motorcycle slipped a little, but she immediately returned her attention to it and got it stable.  
  
“Are you sure, Bucky? I might drop you, I’ve never done three things at once before.”  
  
“Sure I’m sure.”  
  
“Okay, come around in front of me, I have to see you.”  
  
Bucky walked around and stood in front of Y/N.  
  
“Ready?”  
  
“Yep.”  
  
“Okay, here we go.”  
  
Y/N locked her eyes on Bucky’s. Y/e/c eyes trained on his bright blues. She concentrated on him, on lifting him. As he slowly began to rise in the air, he never broke eye contact with Y/N. She began to lose herself in his stare, sinking deeper into the depths of his gaze. It was as if he were pulling her closer to himself with only his eyes. Closer and closer, deeper and deeper into his gaze.  
  
“Hey, how are you doing that?” Sam yelled.  
  
Y/N instantly realized that the reason she felt like Bucky was pulling her closer was because she was closer. She had floated up to be eye level with him. Sam, the motorcycle, Bucky, and Y/N were all 20 feet off of the floor. Bucky smiled into her eyes, still not breaking contact.  
  
“Maybe you had better put us all down now.” He suggested softly, only for her ears.  
  
“Okay.” Y/N responded, not breaking eye contact. She took a deep breath and Sam and the motorcycle slowly touched down on the ground. Y/N’s arms came to rest at her sides.  
  
“And now us, doll.” He smiled into her eyes.  
  
Y/N slowly lowered them both to the ground without moving a muscle or breaking contact with those amazing blue eyes of his. As their feet touched the ground, Sam whooped and wrapped her in a bear hug, “That was awesome, girl! How did you do that?”  
  
Y/N laughed nervously and extricated herself from Sam’s arms. “I don’t know, it just kinda happened.” She looked back at Bucky, who had a strange look his face, almost concern. He stepped towards Y/N.  
  
“What’s wrong, Bucky?” Y/N asked just as she felt something wet on her face. Lifting a hand to her cheek, she pulled it back and saw red. “B-b-bucky?” she whispered as she began to fall to the floor. Strong arms caught her as she slowly slipped into darkness.  
  
“Don’t worry, doll, I’ve got you.” Was the last thing she heard as unconsciousness took over.

Y/N woke to beeping. It was constant and not unpleasant but she couldn’t remember what the beeping was or why it was important. Opening her eyes just a slit, the glare of lights brought back what had happened. She remembered passing out in Bucky’s arms after lifting more than she had ever lifted before. A mix of pride and embarrassment overtook as she closed her eyes and groaned.  
  
“She’s awake! Y/N? Can you hear me, honey?” Bucky’s face blocked some of the glare of light as Y/N opened her eyes again.  
  
“You have such a nice face.” She said drowsily.  
  
Bucky’s deep chuckle warmed her to her toes as he took her hand, “You’re not bad either.”  
  
Bruce came up to the other side of the bed and started down his charted list. “How are you feeling, Y/N? Your heart rate sky rocketed, you almost broke the wrist monitor. But I can’t find anything wrong with you.”  
  
Steve walked in right then, “What’s the prognosis, Dr. Banner?”  
  
“From what I can tell so far, Y/N, your powers act like a muscle. The more you use them, the stronger they get. Your heart rate rises with the more power you use, but I’ve never seen a healthier heart. Your heart is stronger than mine, I think.”  
  
“So she’s cleared for duty?” Steve asked.  
  
“I would like to watch her the rest of today, but I don’t see any reason she can’t go.”  
  
“Go?” Y/N ask. “Go where?”  
  
Bucky grabbed Steve’s arm, “Can I speak with you for minute outside please?”  
  
“Sure Buck.”  
  
The two men walked outside the small glass room and whatever they were talking about, Bucky looked angry and Steve looked firm. A few gestures later and an argument that Steve apparently won, both men came back in the room.  
  
“Y/N, there’s a mission I need you for.” Steve began. Bucky folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall with a scowl for his friend. “I wouldn’t call you for it unless I really needed you. Do you think you’re up for it?”  
  
“Bucky?” Y/N softly called. “What do you think?”  
  
Bucky sighed and stepped forward, taking Y/N hand. “I’m worried about you, I know you’ll be great, but that doesn’t stop me from worrying.”  
  
Y/N looked at Steve, “When do we leave?”  
  
Steve smiled, “Tomorrow morning. Be in the hanger at 7am, we will brief on the plane, we should be back by nightfall.”  
  
Y/N nodded, “I’ll be ready.”  
  
Steve and Bruce left to talk over some of the specifics of the mission, Bucky sat on a stool by the side of Y/N’s bed and held her hand.  
  
“Why are you worried about me, Bucky? Even if I can’t lift tons of weight, I can protect myself fairly well. I mean, I did slice a man in half.”  
  
Bucky sighed, “I know you can protect yourself, Y/N. Worrying about someone other than Steve is kinda new for me. Wanting to be close to someone at all is VERY new for me. I’m more of a loner now and actually enjoying someone else’s company isn’t something I’m used to. But I care about you, Y/N, and because of that, I worry.”  
  
Y/N squeezed his hand, “I care about you too, Bucky. Are you coming on this mission with us?”  
  
“Yes, I managed to convince Steve to let me come and be your partner. That way I can watch out for you.”  
  
“You won’t always be able to do that, you know.”  
  
“I know, but for now, I can and I will.” Bucky promised, bringing her hand to his lips and gently pressing them against her knuckles.  
  
  
The next morning, 7am sharp, Steve, Bucky, Y/N, and Natasha met at the quinjet and took off. Nat took over flying while Steve filled Y/N on the mission. The goal was to retrieve a flash drive of coordinates, names, and ranks of high ranking HYDRA officials that was kept at a secret location that even most HYDRA didn’t know about. The only problem was that it was basically an impenetrable tower. The only access was through tunnels or through a window at the top. Steve wanted to get in and out unseen. He didn’t want HYDRA knowing that SHIELD had that information, so that took the tunnels out of the equation. Also, Steve wasn’t ready for HYDRA to know about Y/N yet, so secrecy was of ultra importance.  
  
Natasha landed the jet about 5 miles from the base and they hiked in quietly, avoiding detection. Once they reached the north side of the tower, Y/N created a shield around Nat and soundlessly lifted her up to the top of the tower and into the window at the top.  
  
“I’m in.” Nat’s voice came over the coms.  
  
“The flash drive should be in a safe on the east wall.” Steve reminded her.  
  
“Contrary to popular opinion, I do read your reports, Cap.” Nat responded.  
  
“Less talking, more safecracking” Bucky whispered.  
  
Where they were hiding in the tree line, they could see the guard come around the building. Because there were no ropes hanging down, no one was concerned about being seen at that moment. Y/N could see the brilliance of Steve’s plan. They couldn’t fly in, and they couldn’t simply climb the tower because they would have surely been seen.  
  
“I’m ready.” Nat’s voice interrupted Y/N thoughts.  
  
“Hold on, there’s some guards over here.” Steve warned.  
  
“No can do, Cap. I’m about to get visitors.”  
  
Y/N put her finger to her ear. “I’ve got you Nat, step out of the window.”  
  
“Just step out?”  
  
“Yep, I’ve got you. Trust me.”  
  
Nat’s head appeared in the window follow quickly the rest of her body as she stepped out into the night. But she didn’t fall. She had stepped right into Y/N’s shield and the instant she was encompassed in it, she disappeared completely. Y/N’s hand was in the air, palm facing where Nat used to be and moved slowly towards the tree line and safety. Not more than 30 seconds passed, Steve and Bucky stayed silent as Y/N seemed to bring nothing down in the front of them. She closed her palm and suddenly Nat appeared standing in front of them.  
  
“Was I invisible?” She whispered.  
  
Y/N grinned, “Yep!”  
  
“Later, let’s get out of here.” Steven interrupted.  
  
They began the hike back to the jet when suddenly they came upon a small platoon of HYDRA soldiers. Bucky grabbed Y/N and pulled her behind him. Her shield came up and hid them both from sight. A few well-placed punches from Steve and Nat took care of the few soldiers and the team raced back to the jet, fearing that one of the soldiers had the chance to radio in and alert HYDRA to their presence. They made it back to the jet, Steve and Nat jumped into the pilot seats and got them in the air. Just as Y/N thought they were making a safe escape, an explosion in the wing rocked the ship.  
  
“We’ve been hit!” Nat yelled. “Strap yourselves in!”  
  
Y/N and Bucky strapped in, holding on as the jet rocked precariously back and forth. Steven and Nat doing their best to right the jet and get them home.  
  
“How long do we have?” Steve asked Nat.  
  
“We should be fine, I think we can make it.”  
  
They flew for about 30 minutes before the entire jet lurched in the air.  
  
“Okay, we might not make it all the way home.” Nat corrected.  
  
Y/N unbuckled and stood in the middle of the jet, arms outstretched on both sides.  
  
“What are you doing, Y/N?” Bucky yelled.  
  
“Helping!” Y/N answered as the ship lurched again and she stumbled. Bucky jumped up, planted his feet widely, and grabbed her, metal arm around her waist, flesh arm around her shoulders, holding her tight against his chest. “I’ve got you babe. Do your thing.”  
  
Y/N closed her eyes, leaned her head back on Bucky’s shoulders, and extended her shield around the entire Quinjet. The jet’s trajectory smoothed out and flew true.  
  
“Nat, I’ll hold us level, you steer us home.” Y/N called to the cockpit.  
  
Steve swiveled his head back and his eyes grew large at the sight of his best friend holding onto a woman for dear life. Her head peacefully resting on his shoulder while he buried his face in her hair, both of their eyes closed. He smiled at the sight, happy his best friend seemed to have found someone to hold on to at last.  
  
As soon as the jet made a safe landing in the hanger, Y/N collapsed into Bucky’s arms but didn’t immediately lose consciousness. She smiled weakly up into his face, “Did we do it? Are we alive?”  
  
Bucky’s chuckle resounded deep in his chest, “Yeah babe, we did it. We’re home thanks to you.”  
  
“Am I bleeding again?”  
  
“No, honey, you’re just weak.”  
  
“Oh, okay.” Y/N said as she drifted off into unconsciousness.  
  
Bucky lifted her easily and carried her to Bruce. As soon as he had a clean bill of health, even though Y/N hadn’t woken up yet, he took her to sleep it off in his room where he could watch over her.   
  
Y/N woke slowly, feeling like she had run a marathon. There was something heavy on her that felt like it was holding her down. If she were more awake, this might have been a problem, but she was so comfortable and warm, it was hard to care. As she tried to climb into consciousness, she became aware of someone’s breathing. After taking stock and determining it wasn’t her breathing, Y/N began to try to move. It was difficult because she was so sore. Her memories flooded back to her of the mission, making Nat disappear, and extending her shield around the jet to get home, but she couldn’t remember landing! She tried to get up and began to struggle against the weight keeping her down. Something had her strapped down around her middle, just under her breasts.  
  
She began to struggle in earnest until a voice broke in, “Hey hey, it’s okay, Y/N. It’s me, it’s Bucky.”  
  
“Bucky? What’s going on? Where are we?”  
  
“We’re in bed, you’re safe. It’s okay, I’ve got you.”  
  
Y/N realized that she was “trapped” by his metal arm draped over her holding her snugly against his chest. She felt his other arm under her head and began to relax. She carefully rolled in the circle of his arms to face him.  
  
“What happened? Did Nat land the jet okay?”  
  
“Yes, babe, you saved us. You put your shield around the entire ship and compensated for the blown engine and Nat was able to fly us home.”  
  
“I don’t remember landing.” Y/N frowned.  
  
“It’s probably because you completely exhausted yourself. You passed out when we landed and have been sleeping for 24 hours.”  
  
“Twenty four hours! No wonder I’m so thirsty! Who’s bed are we in? It’s not mine.”  
  
Bucky blushed, “It’s mine. I brought you here so I could watch over you and be here when you woke up. I’m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable.” He made moves to get up and began to unwrap himself from around her.  
  
“No.” She put her hand on his cheek, “Stay please.”  
  
He smiled and laid back down, pulling her close. He sighed contentedly.  
  
“Buck?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“Ummm… can we DTR?”  
  
“C-c-can we w-w-what?”  
  
“DTR? Define the relationship?” Y/N chuckled.  
  
“Oh!” Bucky looked relieved. “Ummm. I’m not so good with definitions. Sometimes I’m not even sure what I am.”  
  
“Oh Bucky. Let’s just keep it simple. I like you a lot. You have a strength and a heart that speaks to me, that gives me strength. On the jet, you grounded me. You held me securely in your arms and together we helped Nat land safely. I couldn’t have done it without you nor would I have had the courage to even try.”  
  
“Y/N, I like you so much I think I’m getting lost in you but there’s no other place I would rather be. You’re so brave and kind, you make me want to be better, to deserve you. And you make me think that I could actually be a better man. And…. And… maybe one day, I could deserve you.”  
  
Y/N caressed his cheek and leaned forward and pressed her lips gently against his. Bucky’s arms tightened around her, pulling her closer as he deepened the kiss. She slotted her mouth against his and sighed happily. He had to break the kiss and catch his breath. He laid his forehead against hers, his eyes staying closed, “Babe, I would truly love to continue this until the sun rises, but we have other things to take care of. You need to get up and move around, Bruce said once you woke up that you need to stretch, that you would be sore. I think he might have been speaking from personal experience.”  
  
Y/N chuckled, “Alright, you’ll help me?”  
  
“Always. I will always be here to help you.”  
  
Bucky untangled their limbs and climbed out of bed. He held his hands out to her and helped her slowly stand up.  
  
“Take your time. Go slow.”  
  
“I got it Buck.” Y/N stood carefully and began to move around the room, stretching her arms and legs, trying to loosen her muscles. “Um, Buck, where’s your bathroom?”  
  
He pointed to the door across the room and Y/N slow moved into the bathroom and closed the door. Not knowing the tower backwards and forwards, she didn’t know how far she was from her own room and she needed to brush her teeth. She found some toothpaste and brushed with her finger and splashed some water on her face. This new life as an Avenger was definitely something she could get used to.  
  
Y/N stepped out of the bathroom to find Bucky on the phone.  
  
“Alright, we’ll be there in an hour. Yes, we.” He hung and looked up and she stood in the doorway.  
  
“Who was that?”  
  
“Steve. Now that you’re awake, he wants to debrief. I told him to get you an hour and shower and get some food.” He said as he handed her a bottle of water.  
  
Y/N drank it all in a few gulps. 24 hours without water was a long time.   
  
“Um.. I’m not sure where we are in the tower, can you tell me where my room is so I can clean up?” Y/N asked shyly.  
  
“Oh, well, it’s um… it’s right across the hall.”  
  
“You've been across the hall this whole time?”  
  
“Well, yeah.” His flesh hand nervously rubbed the back of his neck. “I can move if I’m too close or something.”  
  
Y/N laughed and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Never, you’re never too close to me.”  
  
Bucky laughed and gave her a sweet kiss. “I’m going to hold you to that later.”  
  
“Mmmm, please do.”  
  
  
A hot shower, bowl of cereal, and clean jeans and hoodie later, Bucky walked with Y/N to the conference room where the entire team was waiting. They took a seat and Steve began the debriefing. He went over all the specifics of the mission and stopped when he got to Y/N causing Nat to disappear.  
  
“You’re going to have to explain that one to us.” Everyone turned and looked at Y/N.  
  
She cleared her throat, “Well, I’ve been experimenting with my shield, I found that I can alter the temperature inside it, even to extremes. I set a piece of wood on fire on the room one day.”  
  
“That’s true, I was there.” Sam put in.  
  
“I decided that if I could do that, I could alter the look of it as well. I hadn’t practiced it yet, but I was sure I could do it. I made the outside reflect what it saw on the opposite side, rendering Nat effectively invisible. I know I shouldn’t have done before practicing but I knew all the way to my core that I could do it. The same way I knew I could help land the jet.”  
  
“You’re not on trial here, Y/N” Tony interjected. “But I do have something I want you to see.” He turned to the screen and brought up the video of the hanger around the time the jet landed. There was nothing there until suddenly, the jet was there. Landed and safe.  
  
“What just happened?” Bucky asked.  
  
“Y/N not only shielded the ship to give it leverage to fly, she made it invisible too. Even if HYDRA had been on your tail, they never would have seen you. Her shield even hid you from our own tracking. We heard Nat radioing in, but we didn’t see or hear the jet itself until the shield came down. That’s impressive.”  
  
Y/N held her breath, she had no idea she had done that.  
  
“What were you thinking when you shielded the jet, Y/N” Bruce asked.  
  
“I was thinking that I needed to help. I needed to level the ship so that Nat could fly and I needed to keep us safe.”  
  
“Well, you did it.” Steve said. “We all talked about it before you got here, and if you want to, we would like you to stay and become an Avenger. I know we still have lots of time in the trial period, but we are all agreed.”  
  
Y/N looked at Bucky who nodded vigorously, causing Tony to snicker and quickly cover it with a cough when Steve glared at him.  
  
“Alright, Captain America,” Y/N said. “I’m in.”  
  
“Great!” Steve clapped his hands. “Check in with Bruce, make sure he clears you for duty. We leave tomorrow.”  
  
“Tomorrow?” Bucky asked. “So soon?”  
  
“Nothing like getting back on the horse, Bucky.” Steve said.  
  
“No, it’s fine.” Y/N laid her hand on Bucky’s knee under the table. “I’ll be ready.”  
  
Back in his room, Bucky paced and waited for Bruce to finish checking Y/N over. He wanted to go with her to the lab, but Y/N told him to go shower, he stank. Steve agreed and pushed him towards the elevator. He took the fastest shower on record and commenced pacing until Y/N came back. He jumped at the knock on the door and ran to open it only to find Steve.  
  
“Hey, pal, let’s talk a minute.” Steve invited himself in the room. “What’s going on with you and Y/N?”  
  
“Come on it, Steve.” Bucky said from the door, leaving it open as he turned and talked to Steve. “I like her, Steve. I liked her from the instant I saw her. And when I saw what she can do, it’s like I knew in my heart how great she could be. She amazes me every day and I want to… I want” Bucky faltered.  
  
“Hey,” Steve put his hand on Bucky’s shoulder. “I want this for you, Buck. I want all the best things for you and I think Y/N is good for you. What do you want?”  
  
“I want her, Steve, but I’m plagued with the thought that I don’t deserve her. She can do better and maybe I’m afraid that one day, she will realize that and go find better. But I want her for myself. Is that selfish?”  
  
“No, not selfish. You deserve her now. You don’t have to be anything more than you are to deserve her. It’s obvious that she really likes you too and wants to be near you. I just want to make sure that you are going to be okay with her going on missions without you because that’s going to happen eventually.”  
  
“Is that happening tomorrow?”  
  
“No, you’re coming too. I just wanted to prepare you for the future.”  
  
“She’s my future, Steve. I’m completely head over heals for her.”  
  
Outside the door, Y/N leaned against the wall, listening to the men talk.  
  
The sound of Steve’s boots came closer to the open door, Y/N panicked and made herself invisible behind her shield, not wanting Steve to know she was ease dropping, even if unintentionally. She had come back from being checked out in the lab excited to tell Bucky about a girl’s night Nat and Wanda wanted to have with her after they returned from the mission. The concept of family was not something Y/N had, so a girl’s night was definitely new.  
  
Steve came out of the door and passed right in front of her and paused in front of the elevator, pushing the button. He turned slightly and sniffed the air. He chuckled softly, “We will have to remember to give you unscented soap right before a mission. I can’t hear you or see you, but I can smell you.” The elevator doors opened and Steve stepped in, still smiling.  
  
Y/N let her shield down and stepped into Bucky’s room to see him pacing. He stopped as soon as he saw her and took a step towards her.  
  
“Y/N, listen, I think we need to talk.”  
  
“Yeah, we do.” Y/N closed and locked his door, walked across the room to Bucky, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her lips against his in a fervent kiss. His hands came to her waist as he returned her kiss.  
  
“Wait,” Bucky pulled back. “Talking, we need to do that.”  
  
“We are.” Y/N kissed him hard again, his arms wrapping around her, his flesh hand coming up her back and buried in her hair.  
  
“If we don’t stop, I’m going to be able to form words.” Bucky pleaded.  
  
“Oh, good.” Y/N reached her hands under his skirt, finger nails raking down the flesh of his back. Bucky groaned into her mouth, wanting more. He pulled her hoodie up and over her head while she yanked off his shirt. He pulled her back against him, claiming her mouth again.  
  
“I want you, Bucky. I want you now.”  
  
Bucky pulled back and stared into her eyes, making sure she was speaking the truth. Once he was convinced, he gently laid her on his bed, covering her with his body. He smoothed her hair back from her face, “Are you sure you want this? That you want me?”  
  
“I want you, Bucky Barnes. I need you.”  
  
He took his time, pulling off all her clothes. Kissing her skin as he exposed every inch. He worshiped her. She returned his every touch and kiss. They drove each other higher and higher until they reached a blinding release, falling to the mattress and holding each other while they came down.  
  
“Wow.” Bucky said, still breathing heavy.  
  
“Yeah. Wow.” Y/N turned on her side to view his glistening chest rise and fall while he tried to control his breathing. “You’ve got some skill, Barnes.”  
  
“Oh yeah?” He turned to face her, “Well I aim to please. And my aim is very good.”  
  
“Really? That’s the line you’re going with?” Y/N laughed.  
  
Bucky blushed, “It sounded better in my head.”  
  
He pulled the sheet up to cover them when Y/N shivered. She snuggled against his chest and sighed happily.  
  
“Hey, Doll,” Bucky started softly.  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Can we actually talk now?”  
  
Y/N laughed softly, “Yes Buck, what would you like to talk about?”  
  
“Let’s start with you. I want to know about you. Where are you from? Where’s your family? You know my story, I mean who doesn’t? But what’s your story.”  
  
“Well, my story is relatively uneventful compared to yours. Didn’t you read my file like everyone else?”  
  
“I’m not much of a reader. Spill it, Y/N.”  
  
“Alright.” Y/N laid on her back and snuggled into him as she began to talk, looking at the ceiling. “I was born in Philadelphia. My parents gave me up for adoption at birth. I was told later that my mother never even saw me. I don’t know why. One foster family raised me until I was 5 but then I was moved around a lot. I think it’s because my powers were beginning to emerge and no one could really explain why no body wanted to be around me.”  
  
Bucky’s arms wrapped around her in comfort.  
  
“As a teenager I was…. awkward to say the least. I didn’t have many friends, but moving as often as I had to, it was pretty much impossible to keep friends anyway. When I was 18, a woman came to the current foster home I was in and told me she was my sister. My parents had died in a car accident and left me something in their will. She said she didn’t know about me until the reading of the will and was just as shocked as me. She didn’t know why they gave me up either. She’s 3 years older than me and doesn’t remember our mother being pregnant with me.”

“What did she leave you?”  
  
“A necklace. It was a locket with her picture in it. My sister looks just like her, I can only guess I look like my father.”

“Where’s your sister now?”  
  
“She works in Philadelphia. She has a husband and two kids. She loves me as much as she can, but even she can’t deal with my powers. She didn’t know I was different until that night on my 21st birthday when I killed that man.”  
  
Bucky kissed her temple, “You’ve not had an easy life. I’m sorry, Babe.”  
  
Y/N looked into his beautiful blue eyes, “It’s made me who I am. I’m stronger because of it. Besides, I’m finding a family here that I never expected. Nat and Wanda want to have a girl’s night when we get back from this next mission. I found you. I wouldn’t trade that for anything. And I get to help people being an Avenger. I’m living the dream!”  
  
“What did I do to deserve you?”  
  
Y/N smiled, “The same thing I did to deserve you. I have no idea what it was but I would do it again in a heartbeat.”  
  
Bucky kissed her, leaving his forehead resting against hers. “Y/N, I-I love you.”  
  
“I love you too, Buck.” Y/N wrapped her arms around her neck. “I’ve known you for such a short time and yet you have become more dear and necessary to me than anyone else in the world.”  
  
Bucky kissed her again.  
  
“Come on, Y/N. We need to get up and get ready for this mission.” Bucky got out of bed and pulled her along with him to the bathroom.  
  
“Do you know what the mission actually is?” Y/N asked as Bucky turned the hot water on.  
  
“No, I was a little distracted when Tony was talking about it at breakfast.”  
  
“Distracted? By what?”  
  
“We were still sleeping.” Bucky stepped into the shower and held his hand out for her to join him.  
  
“Oh,” Y/N blushed. “I guess everyone knows where we were then?”  
  
“Pretty much, yes.”  
  
“Great. Just great.”  
  
“Honey, the first thing you need to learn about family is that there are very few secrets.”  
  
Y/N took his hand and stepped into the shower and into her new life. A life she chose, a life with Bucky, a life as an Avenger.


End file.
